Young dancers shine

A Werribee dance school has pirouetted its way to 17 awards in a statewide dance competition.

Students from the Brian Nolan Academy of Dance wowed judges with their performances at the Royal Academy of Dance Audrey Nicholls Grade Awards, held at the Victorian College of the Arts, by claiming two firsts, a second, a third, two artistry awards, two encouragement awards and nine honourable mentions.

Thomas Jones, 11, had a particularly successful competition, winning both the grade 4 division and also a scholarship, offered exclusively to male dancers to encourage young men to continue the art.

He will go to Adelaide in January and take part in the RAD Australian Male Summer School, where he will be coached in classical, contemporary, tap and hip-hop by four international professional dancers.

Teacher Brian Nolan said he was thrilled to see how well his students performed in the annual competition.

“It’s a big achievement,” he said.

Mr Nolan, a former member of the Australian Ballet Company and a former Channel Nine dancer, opened his Werribee dance studio 34 years ago and has trained the likes of Australian Ballet Company principal Adam Bull and soloist Valerie Tereshchenko.